What Thanksgiving Is All About

Thanksgiving isn’t about turkey. It isn’t about standing on line at the airport or driving long distances, just to sleep at home or in a relative’s house. (It’s not really about stuffing or cranberry sauce but man, is that stuff good.)

When you come down to it, Thanksgiving is really about two things. It’s about family, and it’s about love. It’s a time when families, and sometimes an invited guest or two, sit down and take a little time to be grateful to be together.

And another thing. Thanksgiving is about education. Here are some reasons why . . .

When people have gone to college or pursued other forms of higher learning, they are better able to support the people who depend on them. So getting educated is actually a way to express your love for the people who are depending on you.

If you are going to college, you become a role model for children in your family. That makes them more likely to see learning as a good thing, and to want to follow in your footsteps and become educated too. So again, education is tied to love.

If you are a veteran or a current member of the armed forces, you are already a role model for your family, friends and neighbors. An education can help you make just as big a contribution in civilian life. And that can help you become even more of an inspiration to younger family members who will join you at the Thanksgiving table.

So as the holidays come and our thoughts turn to gifts, let’s try to remember that getting educated is perhaps the biggest gift of all. It’s a gift that you give to yourself and to the people who love you.